WARM-UP
When things aren’t going as planned, it might be hard to stay motivated to push through it all. But when you compete for God, you can be confident that you are playing and living for a far greater purpose.
WORKOUT
Why Do I Compete?
It’s a question that all athletes ask themselves at some point in their life: Why do I compete?
Usually, that question comes up when dealing with adversity like injuries, fatigue, individual or team struggles, relationship or family issues, or life’s many distractions.
And when you’re not sure, tangible results like personal achievement, team goals, physical benefits and long-term dreams (such as scholarships or career opportunities) tend to be the default motivation.
Q: How often do you ask yourself the question, “Why do I compete?”
Q: What are some tangible results that help you stay motivated as an athlete?
Who Is It All For?
In John 17, Jesus was a few days away from being crucified, buried in a tomb and raised from the dead. He knew that He had limited time with His followers. That’s why Jesus spent a lot of His remaining time on Earth praying for the disciples and all people who would one day believe and commit their lives to telling the world about Him.
Jesus wanted to make sure they had no question about their greater purpose:
Jesus also wanted to redefine what success and winning are all about. Life’s greater purpose has much more to do with God and others than it does with you:
Part of loving God is giving Him the glory for anything good you do, and part of loving others is to tell them about Jesus and remind them how to live like Christ:
Q: How often are you tempted to compete or live for yourself?
Q: How do those passages in Matthew challenge you to compete and live for a greater purpose?
WRAP-UP
Greater Purpose
When your motivations in life come into question, always know that you have been called to compete and to live for someone and something greater than yourself. Here are three ways that your greater purpose will manifest itself in your life:
Greater Glory. Understanding your greater purpose reminds you that the glory goes first and foremost to God!
Greater Team. Understanding your greater purpose means you will look for ways to share God’s love with others.
Greater Things. Understanding your greater purpose will launch you into a new mission and will exceed your wildest expectations.
As you begin to understand your greater purpose, God will continue to cultivate and activate inside of you a desire to live out a powerful truth found in our daily theme verse:
OVERTIME
Using Notes write some specific ways that you might fulfill God’s greater purpose for your life through sports and through your everyday life. Consider these categories:
Glorify God
Love God
Love others
Make disciples